The role of social capital to access rural credit : a case study at Dinh Cu and Van Quat Dong village in coastal area of Thua Thien Hue province

As a poverty reduction strategy, credit access has played an important role in supporting the peasants to improve their production and living standard. However, the level of access to credit differs among various regions and it has been affected by many factors. This thesis examines the relation between social capital factor and capacity for obtaining the credit sources of local people in coastal area of Thua Thien Hue province in Vietnam. It analyzes the role of social capital to access different credit sources as well as explores the effect of network types horizontally and vertically on obtaining the credit from Bank, "hui" groups and moneylenders. Through exploring the influence of social capital on credit access, this research aims to contribute to the debates on social capital and its effect on economic outcomes. The study applies a qualitative approach based on focus group discussion and in-depth interviews. The theoretical underpinnings for the research is drawn from perspectives of scholars about social capital, the context of Vietnamese rural society and the effect of social capital to obtaining the credits. The findings indicate that social capital affects the credit access from the bank through group lending which is assessed by participating in popular organizations. Neighbor network, which is exposed by generalized trust, reputation, balanced reciprocity, and mutual aid activity, facilitates to establish "hui" group in order to obtain rotating credit. On the other hand, vertical relation, which is exposed by trust, generalized reciprocity, and reputation, supports to receive the loans from moneylenders. The study concludes that, the social capital, which is addressed by horizontal and vertical network, is a sine qua non for obtaining credit from both formal and informal credit sources. Simultaneously, the thesis suggests that in order to improve the capacity for accessing credit of local people in rural area, the mechanism of VBSP loans delivery should be expanded to other type of popular organizations instead of focusing on women- and farmer unions. We need to encourage local people to participate in popular organizations to enhance the opportunity of obtaining the credit from VBSP. It is important to integrate "hui" activity into popular organizations’ programs in order to expand this type of credit

Intensive forage cultivation reduces labour input and increases cattle production income in smallholder mixed farming communities of South Central Coastal Vietnam

We investigated the impact of growing introduced forages on cattle production in three communes (Cat Trinh, An Chan and Phuoc Dinh) in South Central Coastal Vietnam. New forages, management, and feeding practices were introduced to 45 selected Best Bet Farmers (BBF) using participatory-adaptive methods over a 3-year period. The BBF changed their cattle production system from grazing and harvesting of native forages to partial grazing plus stall-feeding of cultivated forages. This changed production system reduced the labour time for the BBF because they spent less time managing and cutting native forage for their cattle. The reduction in labour time enabled farmers to re-allocate saved labour to diversify their activities, and increase household income and social interaction within the community. The process succeeded because the BBF accepted the new forage species and applied the new farming practices delivered within a participatory-adaptive framework. The smallholder farmers’ acceptance and ownership of proposed techniques are important for optimising livelihood benefits and ensuring the scaling-out of such techniques to other farmers

Forages Improve Livelihoods of Smallholder Farmers with Beef Cattle in South Central Coastal Vietnam

In South Central Coastal Vietnam, on-farm research and farmer experience demonstrated the benefits of growing improved forages as a means of improving the year round quantity and quality of feed available for beef cattle. In Binh Dinh, Phu Yen and Ninh Thuan provinces, five new forage species (Panicum maximum, cv. TD58, Brachiaria hybrid cv. Mulato II, Pennisetum purpureum cv.VA06, Paspalum atratum cv. Terenos and Stylosanthes guianensis cv. CIAT 184) were evaluated for yield and crude protein concentration. There was not a consistent yield difference between locations for the forage grasses, but in Binh Dinh province P. maximum TD58 produced the highest yield. The grasses were comparable in crude protein concentration. Stylo CIAT 184 performed relatively well and had the highest crude protein concentration. All species have potential use, depending on the circumstances and site factors such as fertility, drainage and availability of irrigation. This work was expanded to a total of 45 farmers to gain feedback on farmer experience in growing different forages. The percentage of farmers who “liked” the introduced forages was Mulato II, 92%; TD58, 85%; VA06, 82%; Paspalum, 46%; and Stylo, 36%. By far the most important early socio-economic impact of developing perennial forage plots close to households was an average 50% reduction in the amount of labour and time that farmers spend supplying cut and carry forage to their animals. In addition, the growing of forages can meaningfully reduce the grazing pressure on common grazing lands, thereby lowering the potential for environmental degradation

CƠ CHẾ TÀI CHÍNH CHO CÁC NHÓM BẢO TỒN CỘNG ĐỒNG VÀ TUẦN TRA THÔN BẢN TẠI CÁC XÃ VÙNG ĐỆM TỈNH QUẢNG NAM: FINANCIAL MECHANISM FOR COMMUNITY BASED CONSERVATION AND VILLAGE PARTROL GROUPS IN QUANG NAM PROVINCE

Although financial regime has been concerned as one of the key factors affecting the success or failure of community based forestry management groups, most of the groups, especially in developing countries faced the challenges of limited financial sources to maintain and operate their duties. The overall objective is to identify and develop the financial regime for community based conservation and village patrol groups in Quang Nam province, so that those groups have efficient and effective contribution to the forest management and development. The study employed qualitative research methods by different tools: key informant interview, group discussion, in-depth interview, and validation workshop. The study found that most of groups have limited accessibility to the financial sources due to the expiration of state programs on forestry development, the lack of members’ cash contribution to the groups, and shortage of supports from donors. The opportunities to obtain financial source for groups’ operation might come from payment for Forestry environment services, support from District and Quang Nam Forest protection and Development Fund; and developing the livelihood models for groups. Two proposed methods for sustainable managing groups’ financial sources are developing micro credit to loan rotatedly among members and/ or establishing a group business model. The interest rate and return from those two models, respectively contribute to group financial sources and improve member income.Thách thức lớn nhất đối với các nhóm quản lý rừng cộng đồng hiện nay là thiếu hụt nguồn tài chính cho các hoạt động của nhóm. Từ thực tiễn đó, việc xác định cơ hội tài chính và quản lý sử dụng bền vững nguồn tài chính là một trong những vấn đề cấp thiết đang được quan tâm hiện nay. Mục tiêu tổng quát của nghiên cứu này là xác định các cơ hội tài chính và cách thức quản lý, sử dụng bền vững nguồn tài chính cho các nhóm bảo tồn cộng đồng và tuần tra thôn bản tại các xã vùng đệm tại tỉnh Quảng Nam. Bằng phương pháp nghiên cứu định tính thông qua các công cụ như phỏng vấn người am hiểu, thảo luận nhóm, phỏng vấn sâu, hội thảo tham vấn, nghiên cứu đã chỉ ra thực trạng khó khăn của các nhóm trong việc tiếp cận nguồn tài chính, những cơ hội tiếp cận nguồn tài chính đến từ dịch vụ môi trường rừng, hỗ trợ của ngân sách, và triển khai các mô hình sinh kế cho nhóm. Bên cạnh đó, nghiên cứu cũng đề xuất cách thức quản lý và sử dụng bền vững nguồn tài chính thông qua việc hình thành hoạt động tín dụng vi mô và phát triển các hoạt động sản xuất kinh doanh cho nhóm

Exploring market orientation, innovation, and financial performance in agricultural value chains in emerging economies

This study explored the usefulness of market orientation in an agricultural value chain in an emerging economy: Vietnam. Drawing on data from 190 actors in a beef cattle value chain in Vietnam's Central Highlands, the study examined the relationship between market orientation and innovation. The findings indicate that there is no significant relationship between market orientation and performance. However, customer orientation and inter-functional coordination are positively related to innovation, and there is a positive relationship between innovation and financial performance. The findings provide insight into the relationships among market orientation, innovation, and performance in agricultural value chains in emerging economies. (C) 2017 Journal of Innovation & Knowledge. Published by Elsevier Espana, S.L.U

Forages improve livelihoods of smallholder farmers with beef cattle in South Central Coastal Vietnam

In South Central Coastal Vietnam, on-farm research and farmer experience demonstrated the benefits of growing improved forages as a means of improving the year-round quantity and quality of feed available for smallholder beef cattle production. In Binh Dinh, Phu Yen and Ninh Thuan provinces, 5 new forage species (Panicum maximum cv. TD58, Brachiaria hybrid cv. Mulato II, Pennisetum purpureum cv. VA06, Paspalum atratum cv. Terenos and Stylosanthes guianensis cv. CIAT 184) were evaluated for yield and crude protein concentration. There was no consistent yield difference between locations for the forage grasses, but in Binh Dinh province P. maximum TD58 produced the highest yield. The grasses were comparable in crude protein concentration. Stylo CIAT 184 produced much less forage than the grasses but had a much higher crude protein concentration. All species have potential use, depending on the circumstances and site factors such as fertility, drainage and availability of irrigation. This work was expanded to a total of 45 farmers to gain feedback on farmer experience in growing different forages. The percentage of farmers who “liked” the introduced forages was Mulato II, 92%; TD58, 85%; VA06, 82%; Paspalum, 46%; and Stylo, 36%. By far the most important early socio-economic impact of developing perennial forage plots close to households was an average 50% reduction in the amount of labor and time that farmers spend supplying cut-and-carry forage to their animals. In addition, the growing of forages can meaningfully reduce the grazing pressure on common grazing lands, thereby lowering the potential for environmental degradation.</p